Global and local interactions in tourism

Abstract

Globalization is often viewed as a powerful force coming from "outside". Using Haw Par Villa in Singapore as an example, this paper counterargues that landscapes also change in response to forces emanating from "within". The geometries of power arising from the interaction of the global and the local transformed Haw Par Villa into a worldclass Oriental Disneyland in the first instance, then back to its mythological and cultural roots, and finally to a landscape marked by the personal influences of a small group of operators who managed the park. The restlessness of the attraction shows that landscapes evolve as they become contested and redefined according to changing historical-geographical trajectories. © 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.